


I Crave the Darkness

by midnightnarry13



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, High School, Motorcycles
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-08-30
Updated: 2018-01-18
Packaged: 2018-12-21 14:53:21
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,252
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11946594
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/midnightnarry13/pseuds/midnightnarry13
Summary: AU in which Betty Cooper is a waitress at Pop's Diner. Jughead is leader of the Serpents. When he stumbles into her work one day she realizes there's a darkness missing that she's always craved.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> All of these characters belong to the writers of the show Riverdale. I own nothing. This is my first ever story posted on here. KInda nervous lol. Please let me know what you think! Thank you :)

Betty Cooper chews the top of the white ball-point pen in her hand. Her blonde hair sways in its usual ponytail as her head angles in thought. Service was pretty slow this evening compared to the normal. Usually her fellow school peers were piled up in booths together laughing and gossiping about the day’s events or gossiping about the newest news in Riverdale. Nothing ever happened in Riverdale. So when it had become public this morning that Ms. Perfect Polly Cooper was expecting with Mr. Perfect Jason Blossom’s baby, whom is supposedly her sworn family enemy, well there became something to talk about. 

Betty smooths the bottom of her yellow Pop’s uniform out, a nervous habit for when her thoughts are a train wreck. She’s never been one to love the spotlight, especially now being known as “the sister of pregnant senior Polly Cooper”, she couldn’t seem to get out of it. She had been the only one to know of her sister’s relationship with Jason. The ever-loving Betty supported any and everything her sister wanted to do; the two had always been close. Maybe that’s why she blames herself for the current wreck her household seems to be in. Of course the first thought to pop in Betty’s head was that hadn’t she supported her sister’s forbidden romance maybe the current predicament never would have arisen. 

The chime of the bell pulls her away from her thoughts and she glances at the door to survey her incoming customer. It’s Veronica Lodge, the most out of place character stuck in the simple town of Riverdale. The last person Betty had ever expected to become her best friend. She greets Veronica with a small smile, “Hey V.” Veronica smiles back, Prada bag propped in the crook of one arm as she places a napkin over the seat of the bar stool by the counter with a grimace. She has this thing with germs. “Michael Kors is not to get dirty Betty.” She had quoted one day.

Veronica places her bag on the counter and clasps her hands in front of her, her array of bracelets jingling with her movements. “I’m surprised you decided to grace Pop’s with your presence.” Betty grins at her. Veronica laughs as she flips her dark her over her shoulder in a gesture that says me too. Her face turns serious, dark eyebrows slightly scrunched together as her face fills with concern, “Are you okay? After everything today?” She asks. Betty’s heart sinks and her hands twitch, she had wanted it to be a dream but Veronica questioning her makes it all the more real. 

“Honestly, I’m okay V. I just...” She trails off looking for the right words to describe the mess of emotions clouding her head and chest. “I just feel like it’s my fault.” She finishes, nervously biting her lip. “Elizabeth Cooper. First of all, it takes two to tango babe and you’ve never even danced…” Yes, she’s a virgin but she preferably wouldn’t like Pop who is behind the counter to be aware of the fact so she gives Veronica a pointed look. “…And you’re not the one in the compromising position. You can’t keep blaming yourself for things you can’t control.” Her eyes wander down to Betty’s hands as she says so. Betty instinctively clenches them into fists and closes her eyes. She knew the crescent-shaped scars littered along her hand were the focus of Veronica’s attention. 

Betty had always felt that underneath her good-hearted, nature was a darkness stirring underneath waiting to come to the surface. It scared her, the sometimes dark thoughts that consumed her mind. She wanted to break the rules, wanted to drink and smoke like the rest of the kids in her class but that wasn’t Betty Cooper. She couldn’t. A manicured hand was snapping in-front of her face, forcing her to focus again. “Sorry.” She says to a concerned Veronica. “And I love you for risking your life to come here and check on me, it means a lot.” She smiles warmly at her best friend. “Anything for my bestie, but just so you know, nobody is to know I was here.” The raven-haired girl says as she points a finger in Betty’s face. Betty laughs genuinely. She’s lucky to have crossed paths with Veronica Lodge.

A low rumble pulls both of their attention to the windows at the front of the diner. A flurry of black motorcycles is lining up across the parking lot. One word sewn onto the back of their black leather jackets Serpents. Betty’s heart drops to her stomach as she takes in the group of south-siders’ making their way to the door. She’s heard stories: how they vandalized the drive-in, stolen, beaten people up, even murder. Least to say, the last people Betty wanted to be around. They never ventured this way and honestly, what if they were here to steal from Pop? Her mind was flicking through all her options here when Veronica spoke excitedly-

“They’re so hot! What I wouldn’t do to ride one of those motorcycles.” She grins wistfully. Betty has come to the conclusion that Veronica is actually insane. She’s shaking at the thought of serving these leather-clad miscreants, will they tip her? Will they expect free food? Before she can run to the back and ask Pop what to do they are filing in one at a time. She counts as twelve of them walk in and pile themselves up in booths near the front. She looks at Veronica panicked. Her friend is already scoping out the scene, “I’ll take the table to the far left. I’ve always liked snakes.” She smirks and grabs the spare note pad from Betty’s apron. She stands and starts to saunter over to the table, her black dress hugging every curve, no doubt capturing the attention of every gang member in the room. Betty closes her eyes and counts the clicks from Veronica’s pumps across the floor until they stop. She can’t avoid them forever. She gets paid to waitress not to hide. 

Ding.

She jerks her head up at the sound of the bell. In walks the thirteenth member of the group. He’s tall and lanky, a gray beanie covering a head of dark curls. He’s clad in all black except the white shirt tucked under his leather jacket that bears the same coiled snake as the others. Betty knows she’s staring. Hard. Her eyes are glued to the cut of his jaw and he turns to walk to a table occupied by three. Her eyes move down to the red flannel tied around his waist, butterflies fill her stomach at the sight. 

Betty Cooper has liked one guy in her entire lifetime. Archie Andrews. The polar opposite of the stranger who has just walked into the diner. Archie is captain of the football team, straight A’s, perfect red hair, strong and tall. He’s been her neighbor since they were little and somewhere along the line of growing up she found she liked him. After years of pining over the perfect American boy she finally got the courage to ask him out. Long story short, they are not the match Betty had originally thought. Yes, they would be the perfect white picket fence family. Football star marries cheerleader and they live happily ever after. Betty didn’t want perfect. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, she craved something dark.  
The stranger’s presence was pulling Betty to the table and her feet were moving before her mind could catch up. Before she knows it she is standing in front of the table and her heart is practically beating out of her chest. “Hey there.” A serpent sitting across from the beanie-clad boy greets her. To be completely honest, that was not the greeting she was expecting and she internally shames herself for judging too soon. “I’m Betty and I’ll be your waitress this afternoon. What can I get you to drink?” She says automatically stealing a shy glance at the stranger who somehow got her to make her way over here. He’s looking back at her, dark blue eyes running over her face. She bites her lip at the attention and nervously scribbles down each man’s order. When it gets to Mr. Blue eyes Betty holds her breathe as not to make any noise so that she can hear his voice. “Um... A vanilla milkshake, I guess.” He drawls and his voice is deep, not rough but smooth. She’s half tempted to ask him to repeat himself just so she can hear it again. She gives a shy smile to the group and goes to take care of their drinks. 

Veronica is over by the drink machine busily pouring glasses. If Betty’s heart wasn’t beating at a crazy rate, then she would take her phone out and record Veronica doing actual work. “I already served one table and placed their orders. This is actually so easy; I’d work here every day for this kind of eye candy.” V says turning back around to get a good look at Betty. “Why do you look so shocked? I am capable of manual labor B.” She says flipping her hair over her shoulder. Betty momentarily contemplates telling her that manual labor is a lot harder but quickly dismisses it to start on the vanilla milkshake. Her friend is giving her a play by play of her interactions with the mysterious men but really, Betty isn’t listening. She keeps glancing at the table she had just came from, the object of her interest is listening intently to whatever story his friend is telling him, he’s got a toothpick between his lips and she can see the movement as he absentmindedly bites at it. 

“Betty!” Veronica yells a bit too loudly. She jerks her head back to look at her friend across from her. She can practically feel a set of blue eyes glued to her back, her face flushes red.  
“Yes?” Betty asks Veronica as casually as she can. The girl in front of her is eyeing her suspiciously, “That milkshake is done.” Betty looks down and Veronica is indeed right. She fills up the other drinks that were ordered and takes a deep breath before carrying them over. She places each one down in front of the men, saving the milkshake for last. She avoids eye contact this time knowing her face will flush otherwise. “What can I get you guys to eat?” And she knows her voice is shaky so she nervously wipes her palms against her uniform.   
They go around the table and each place an order except the young man across from Mr. Blue Eyes speaks for him, “And Jughead here will have the best burger on the menu. His diet is strictly burgers.” And they all share a laugh. Jughead smiles back at his friends as he plays with the paper from his straw, rolling it between his thumb and index finger. 

“Jughead?” Betty hears a voice ask. It’s not until all eyes are on her that she realizes it was her voice. She had asked. Oh god, the embarrassment. 

She’s looking at him with big eyes and a stark, red face. He doesn’t necessarily look offended but more so amused by the blonde in front of him. A smirk is spread across his lips which only makes Betty fidget more.

“Everyone calls me Jughead, it’s a nickname.” He explains. She watches the way his lips form words. Momentarily she feels special that he decided to share this information with her. How many times has he been asked but dismissed them? Probably a lot. But not Betty.

“I like it.” She says after a shaky breath and then excuses herself. Now she can feel all eyes on her as she walks back behind the counter. 

How many times can she embarrass herself in one day? She slides the ticket through the little window to pop and then makes a break for the bathroom. She locks the door and turns to the mirror. She looks at herself; the blonde hair pulled into a tight ponytail, light pink lips, pale skin. She was simple. He wouldn’t ever look her way, too plain-Jane. Her palms itch at the thought. Betty Cooper has always craved darkness. She’s never been the one to look for that darkness but what if it found her? What if the source is sitting right outside in a booth? This is madness. She knows nothing about him besides the fact that he likes vanilla milkshakes and has an odd nickname. She splashes some cool water on her cheeks. 

“He’s just some guy that you’ll probably never see again.” She tells herself in the mirror. “Get. Your. Shit. Together. Cooper.” She exasperates. She pulls her ponytail tighter and with a quick nod at herself she opens the door and walks back out. Much to her surprise the food is served and everyone is eating. Wow she really spent that long giving herself a pep talk? She really is a loser.

“I have never seen you this wild over a boy B!” Veronica squeals excitedly. “Especially a bad boy. I’m finally corrupting you.” She claps her hands together excitedly. Betty feels her face turn red for the umpteenth time that day. 

“I’m not sure what you mean.” She says playing coy. 

“Grey beanie. Rebel without a cause. Vanilla milkshake. The guy misusing his flannel to make a terrible fashion statement.” 

“Says the girl who wore a dress made of actual diamonds to a funeral.” Betty says rolling her eyes.

“I’ll have you know that diamonds are the latest fashion trend in Paris thank you very much.” Veronica defends and Betty can only sigh in response. 

“He’s cute, I can see the appeal. At least get his nu- “Betty cuts her off there. 

“No, V. He wouldn’t… He wouldn’t go for a girl like me.” She says in a tone that dismisses the conversation all together. 

She busies herself rolling silverware. Nobody else comes in, probably too intimidated by the bikes out front to stop in. She goes round to each table checking to see what is needed. She feels a particular set of eyes occasionally follow her movements. She might fumble with a few things because of this. She’s putting some glasses away under the counter when she hears someone clear their throat. 

She stands straight quickly and for a quick second she expects it to be Jughead across from her like in the movies. It’s not. She looks behind the gang member in front of her to find Jughead talking animatedly with one of his friends. Focus Betty. She smiles at the guy in front of her noticing the name on his jacket says Bruno. Bruno places all the checks on the counter, “I’ve got the money for all of these.” 

“Okay, just come down here.” She says and leads him down to the register. She quickly adds up all the tickets and tells Bruno the total. He hands her a wad of cash, “Just keep the change as your tip.” He instructs. Her eyes widen because it’s a pretty big tip. 

“Thank you.” She smiles softly, extra thankful for her job this evening. He half-smiles back and gives a nod before turning and walking back to his group. Veronica is in the middle of it all, flirting her heart away with a handful of them. Betty, for a moment, wishes she were that confident. Wishes she could just march up to Jughead, give him a cute smile and ask him his number. The imagery it creates in her head causes her to zone out.

Ding.

And there they go. All filing out the door. Her eyes search for a gray beanie among the mess. There he is standing in the back. Maybe he likes to be the last one every time? Betty doesn’t really know but she quickly looks down so he won’t catch her eye. 

“Hey.” She hears his voice call from across the room.

Her head jerks up so quickly she can feel her ponytail swing from the force. She’s looking at him with big eyes. 

“I like the name Betty too.” He drawls in a smooth tone and a subtle smirk appears on his lips. And then he’s gone. Her heart is pumping fast; her lip is between her teeth so hard she thinks blood has been drawn. He left so fast she couldn’t get a response in, though she was too tongue tied to anyways. She mentally curses herself, when will she ever get that opportunity again? She’ll never see him again.

Or so she thought.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This took positively forever to write because my computer was out of commission at the worst timing :(

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I own none of these characters! They completely belong to Archie Comics and the writers of the show Riverdale.

Riverdale isn’t easily spotted on the map. Maybe once you squint really hard and use a magnifying glass you might just make it out. It’s a tiny, nowhere town. That’s the thing about small towns; everyone is pretty much the same and nothing is your own business. So maybe that’s why Betty’s new nickname around school had become “Gang Bang Cooper”. All because she was a waitress to a bunch of men in leather jackets that happened to like to ride motorcycles. Someone had seen this and somehow interpreted Betty doing her job as some freaky type of kink. Of course, the news spread fast. 

Betty was a virgin. A good-doer, kind-hearted, genuine, high-spirited person and sex did not combine with any of those. She had been kissed by two guys in her entire life – Her father when she was younger and Archie at a family friend’s wedding when they were both eight. The two had been under an apple tree playing, recreating their own wedding. Betty had been determined that Archie had to give her a proper kiss on the lips for it to be a wedding. After grumbling about cooties he had finally planted the quickest, most chocolaty (from about three of the brownies off the dessert table) kiss on Betty’s lips. She had squealed and proclaimed she’d never kiss another boy. She hadn’t really meant for that to be true but here she was. 

It’s another typical Friday. Betty just had to get through the school day, check, and then the football game – her bed is seriously calling her name right now. She looks in the locker room mirror; her blue bow is adorned with Vixens written in gold sparkles and it sits in the middle of the back of her hair where it holds half of her hair while the other half is down and free. Betty had never really desired to be on the cheer squad, Veronica had actually been the reason she even tried out. V had practically begged her just to try out and it wasn’t until she had threatened to tell Alice Cooper about the ONE time Betty had gone to a party and consumed a few sips alcohol, that Betty finally agreed. Betty had ended up loving cheerleading however, which Veronica is continuously smug about. 

“It’s show time girls! Gina hike that skirt up. We’re the Riverdale Vixens, not nuns.” Cheryl chimes from the front of the locker room. Her bright ruby-red lips, that almost match the shade of her hair, are moving fast as she throws orders out to the girls. Betty knows the routine. She’s telling them to be sharp, loud, and sexy. She is a firm believer that her cheerleaders are meant to dance like strippers. Cheryl is among one of the richest in town, also probably one of the biggest brats. She gets every and anything she wants. She’s a Blossom; it’s in her blood. She’s always in red. The Blossoms were known for the color red, to them it showed power. 

“Guess who’s coming to the game tonight?” Veronica grins slyly beside Betty. The look of it makes Betty’s stomach turn, this cannot be good. 

“Pretty boy from the diner you were drooling all over.” And Betty is blushing now. Jughead. She had not been drooling. She had felt an undeniable attraction to him, he was breathtaking honestly. She slaps Veronica’s arm with more force than intended, “You invited him?” She asks panicked. Veronica rubs the now red spot on her arm with a wince, “Betty I’m doing you a favor. Your inability to speak to the opposite sex is going to be your downfall.” Betty stares at Veronica in awe. There are millions of problems in the world: possible war, pollution, child hunger, government corruption, the melting ice caps for god’s sake! Yet Veronica thinks Betty being single is the end of the world. 

“What were you thinking? If I wanted to talk to Jughead then I would have.” Betty says quite defensively. She knows she’s in trouble now because Veronica is jumping around excitedly. 

“You know his name!” She squeals. Fact: Betty has never rolled her eyes so hard until this moment. 

“Let’s just say that I worked my famous Lodge charm. All I had to do was smile and ask his friends to come watch. They promised to bring him.” She’s grinning devilishly. Betty sighs at this, “V, why do you always have to meddle?” she practically whines. 

It had been two weeks since the Serpents had come into the diner. Betty had thought about one in particular occasionally over the past week. They were passing thoughts, like if she saw a guy wearing a beanie or served a vanilla milkshake to a customer. There was no point for her to sit on the thought of him. Jughead was bad news and way out of her league. 

“Because I love you and I want you to be happy B.” Veronica says sincerely, wrapping her arms around Betty for a hug. Betty returns it full-heartedly. 

“Besides, if we’re being totally honest here, I mostly did this for me. I’ve been texting this one named Jake, and he promised dessert after the game.” Betty knows Veronica doesn’t mean actual food. 

“One: you’re disgusting. Two: This is going to start even more rumors. I wanted a stress free Junior year.” Betty whines again. Cheryl is yelling at them to hurry up because they need to get in the spirit chain. 

“Let them talk, B. They’re just jealous that the hot Serpent king doesn’t want them.” Veronica demands, rather intensely. Betty doesn’t fight her anymore because it’s a losing battle. 

They run out of the locker room and to the field. They hook onto the two lines the band has formed for the football players to run through. They do a few crowd cheers while they wait for the coach to get done with his speech to the team. Betty hears the opening to their school’s fight song and she’s doing the dance that goes with it without any thought. She’s trying to not eye the crowd for anyone in particular, especially not a boy wearing a beanie. Certainly not. 

Next is the national anthem and then they’re running off of the field to their designated sideline to cheer. Betty gets in formation and carefully scans the crowd for her sister and parents, she waves upon finding them. No Serpents. So far so good. They do a few cheers – Cheryl calling them out from the front. That’s when Betty sees him. 

The cheerleaders are on the pavement in front of the bleachers, they have an extra fence blocking them off from fans passing by. Jughead is leaning against the fence in front of her. Black jeans with suspenders hanging down around the waist. A light blue jean jacket covers his torso and his hair haphazardly hangs out of the same beanie he wore two weeks ago. Betty recognizes the two other guys with him even though none of them are sporting their signature jackets. 

He’s looking at her. 

Cheryl calls another cheer and Betty’s body responds immediately, although her mind isn’t there with it. It’s too zoned in on the boy standing a few feet in front of her. She follows his eyes; they’re trained on her legs. Her skin feels hot as her cheeks turn a bright red. His eyes move back up to meet hers and they hold eye contact for a few seconds before Betty tilts her head down in embarrassment. Her skin feels like it’s on fire now. 

This is how the first and second quarter of the game go. Betty stealing quick glances at Jughead who is already looking at her. Her blushing every single time. She wonders if her reaction plays part in why he continues to look. She’s messed up a few cheers, very unlike Betty Cooper, because of this sudden spotlight she’s been given. The clock buzzes signaling that it’s half time and the girls are free for a small break. Veronica is grabbing her hand and tugging her towards the three gang members before she can even begin to process it. 

“Hey stranger.” Veronica greets. A rather tall, built guy steps forward with brown wispy hair and bright green eyes. This, Betty assumes, must be Jake. He wraps an arm around Veronica’s waist and pulls her into his side. She laughs lightly and Betty wonders exactly how many times these two have seen each other in the two weeks. 

“I didn’t peg you for the cheerleading type.” A voice breaks her out of her curiosity and she realizes Jughead is talking to her. Her skin prickles for whatever reason. 

“I didn’t peg you for the football fan type.” She challenges back. Eyebrow quirked up slightly as if to say Try Me. Little did Betty know that Jughead thought this was damn near the cutest thing he had ever seen. 

“Who isn’t a fan of sweaty men, full of insecurities – mix that with a few masculinity problems topped with extreme testosterone, hitting each other?” His voice drips with sarcasm and Betty finds herself laughing lightly. Albeit, Archie was on the team. She shyly toes at the ground with her white sneaker, “Oh yeah? What do they say about boys who drive motorcycles and wear strictly leather jackets?” She asks going for a teasing tone but it comes out breathier than she’d wanted.

He’s smirking at her now, “A walking cliché. Rebel without-a-cause wannabes. The epitome of daddy issues.” 

Betty had expected a far different, much cockier answer. Jughead is wrong, He’s no cliché at all. “What’s your last name?” She asks curiously, only now realizing they are the only two still left by the fence. No doubt that was done on purpose. 

“Jones.” 

“Jughead Jones.” She says, and for some reason it feels sinful rolling off her tongue. Maybe because she’s Betty the good girl, daughter of the overbearing Alice Cooper, or maybe it’s because she’s never had such thoughts about a guy before.

“Betty Cooper.” He greets back at her. Her heart leaps in her chest. Okay, what the actual fuck is going on? He’s just another human being. However, she’s never ached to touch someone so bad. 

“And how do you know my last name Mr. Jones?” She inquires.

He bites his lip and his eyes travel down the expanse of her body. Not in a hungry or vulgar way, but it’s enough to make Betty shy under the attention. She smooths her skirt; a nervous habit she’s picked up from working at the diner. He scratches at the back of his neck before answering. 

“I was at Pop’s last Summer. You were in the back corner booth, if I remember correctly. You were in this red dress and you were reading some book.” He pauses for a moment looking thoughtful. “Pride and Prejudice I think. And your hair…It was down and messy.” Jughead looks slightly nervous to continue. “I asked Pop who you were.” 

Betty can practically feel how big her eyes must be. Jughead Jones had noticed her. Nobody ever noticed Betty. She remembers that Summer well. She had woken up to her screaming parents that morning. They couldn’t agree on anything when it came to work, they ran the Riverdale local newspaper and it often divided her household. She had grabbed her book, put on a dress and left her hair a mess; she just wanted out. Pop’s had always felt like home, more so than her actual house, and that’s where she had gone. 

“Why didn’t you come say anything?” Betty asks, gazing up at the model-worthy boy in front of her. Jughead laughs a little, “I’m a Serpent, we’re meant to be assholes.” Betty quirks a grin at him. “An asshole wouldn’t have drove to a football game that is clearly not his scene just so his friend could see a girl.” She inquires. Jughead has been the least bit of an asshole to her. 

“Don’t say that too loud, you’ll kill my bad boy aesthetic.” He scolds back. Shooting the blonde a fake smolder. Betty wonders how she hadn’t seen the boy that day, she’s seemed to gravitate towards him since the second he walked through the diner door. She looks over at the scoreboard and finds she only has a few minutes left. She anxiously taps her toe on the ground, it’s now or never she battles in her head. 

“Can I give you my number?” She blurts out. Face bright and voice trembling, she knows she must look crazy. It seems that Jughead is more surprised than Betty is however. One eyebrow is raised slightly and his mouth tilts up at the corner. No doubt caught off guard by her sudden outburst. 

Betty Cooper has always been a people pleaser. She never did anything for herself but instead did everything she could to make those around her happy. Her parents would certainly not approve of what Betty has just offered but this is her life. Alice and Hal Cooper can grieve and get over it on their own time. 

The corner of Jughead’s mouth is tilted up slightly as he hands over an older phone. Her fingers shakily type in her number, there is absolutely no doubt that he can see it. He makes no comment on the matter and patiently waits for her. For a fleeing second she considers the dangers of befriending a gang leader. She knows she’s taking a risk but to feel such an intense curiosity is rare to her, this being a first time phenomena. He takes the phone back and slips it into his back pocket. 

“I better head back before Cheryl hunts me down and makes a scene.” She smiles slightly apologetic. It hadn’t been enough time Betty decides. She could have stood there all night conversing with Jughead Jones. 

“We definitely wouldn’t want a Blossom scene; it’d make front page news I’m sure.” And he was right. The Blossom family built the town and had run it since. They used it to their advantage as much as possible. The blonde laughs, head tilting slightly causing her ponytail to swing back and forth unaware of how bad the boy in front of her wants to rip the elastic out and make her hair a mess.

“And we all know how much the Blossoms love us Coopers.” She mutters sarcastically. It had started long before her birth. The Blossoms making every effort to ruin the Cooper name while Alice and Hal Cooper constantly tore the Blossoms reputation in their paper. 

“Ah a modern day Capulet versus Montague. That must make you the Juliet.” Jughead says leaning his elbow on the fence. Betty isn’t entirely sure that’s accurate but blushes nonetheless.

“I’m glad you came. Hopefully it wasn’t as terrible as you were expecting.” Betty says backing away slowly. She is full of surprises tonight. 

“I can’t say I fully support the concept of football but I think I may have gained some respect for cheerleading.” He grins at her and her cheeks are now even brighter.  
“Farewell Juliet.” He calls as she turns away, her stomach full of butterflies. 

\-----------------------------------

Once the final buzzer of the game sounds Betty grabs her bag and books it to the locker room so that she can change and get home to her own bed. She had lost sight of Jughead during the middle of the fourth quarter meaning he must have already left. Veronica had bombarded her with questions as soon as she returned back to the cheer formation. Betty hadn’t answered because she didn’t really have any answers herself. 

She grabs her from the side pocket of her bag to check the time. Instead she finds a text message from an unknown contact;

“So Juliet, how do you feel about breaking and entering? –JJ”


	3. Chapter 3

Betty scribbles absentmindedly in her notebook. Mr. Jackson droning on about cells and their functions. Science had never really been Betty’s favorite course but she was pretty well-rounded in all subjects. Alice Cooper expected a perfect daughter who read ahead in all her classes and got nothing but A’s. That is precisely what Betty had done – she was already on chapter seven of the textbook while her classmates were on chapter four. 

Reading ahead always made her inevitably bored in class and maybe that’s why her mind drifted to the phone sitting in her purse. Now phones weren’t allowed at Riverdale High, they were to be off and in lockers at all times except for lunch. That’s where Betty’s phone usually was. She reached down to grab her purse and stealthily pulled the device out; hiding it between her and the desk. She clicked the home button. 

1 New Message

Her heart leaped in excitement. It had been a week since the football game where she gave Jughead her number. A week since he had asked her how she felt about committing crimes. Honestly she still didn’t know why he had asked but what she’s still reeling over was her own reply. She hadn’t objected like she should have but instead had asked, “When and where?” She opens his message, skin tingling as she reads the words on her screen. 

“Morning Juliet.”

Betty grins down at her phone, stomach somersaulting at the words. Betty wants to ask if that makes him Romeo. Jughead wasn’t from Betty’s world; he smoked, drank, drove fast cars, broke the law, but most of all, he was a Serpent. Jughead Jones was from the wrong side of the tracks, that translated to dangerous. Then there was Betty, sweet sweet Betty. The perfect model citizen of Riverdale. Here she sits in a classroom day dreaming about Riverdale’s very own bad boy. The curiosity blooms in her chest. She looks down at the phone in her hand, gnawing at her lip. She starts typing on her phone but quickly erases and starts again. She settles with a simple: 

“Good Morning :)” 

Is the smiley face too much? Maybe this is Betty’s way of flirting but maybe it was also kiddish. Jughead was all tall, lean muscles and tattoos, (Veronica had shared this last bit of information and now Betty wanted to see the ink for herself). Much opposed to Archie’s boyish charm that Betty had dreamed about for so long. Her phone buzzed again and she quickly unlocked it. 

“You free after school?”

Betty’s heart was doing fucking gymnastics now. The words looked so casual written across the screen. She briefly wondered if Jughead felt as nervous as she did. Was she free today? She would go home and study until she was ready to sleep like she normally did, that was Betty’s routine. She could tell Jughead no and listen to her usually rational self. Three weeks ago this wouldn’t even be a choice for Betty, she would’ve gone home. Spending time after school with a gang member would surely send Alice Cooper to an early grave. But Betty wants this. 

“Yeah, I think I am.” She sends back, trying ridiculously hard to not seem overly eager. She wants to seem nonchalant, as if her heart isn’t about to fly out of her chest for everyone in the room to see. 

“Betty.” 

Betty’s head jerks up and her cheeks flood with warmth. Her eyes move until they land on an expecting Mr. Jackson. He’s looking at her expectantly and honestly, she has no fucking clue what he had said. They’re all staring at her and her minds reels trying to figure out a response.

She clears her throat, “Yes sir?” She says slowly. The words rolling off of her tongue carefully in case that isn’t the correct response. He sighs and places his hands on his lower back looking much like a pregnant woman and Betty has to cough to keep herself from lingering on the thought. 

“Mr. Keller has come to collect you.” He mutters and pushes his glasses up his nose. The smudge of his rather large fingerprint can be seen from the back of the room. Betty gathers up her belongings, making sure to drop her phone back in her purse first. She’s slightly worried because she had no idea why Kevin would need to pull her from class. Had something happened to Polly? Being the sheriff’s son; Kevin would be one of the first to know. 

She shoots Mr. Jackson a shy smile as she slides by him and out of the classroom door. Kevin is standing there waiting, he’s holding a brown box against his stomach. Betty looks at him curiously and he’s flashing her a shit-eating grin. The worry in the pit of her stomach vanishes and is replaced with an odd curiosity. She crosses her arms and raises her brow at him, 

“What is this dire emergency?” She asks, eyes surveying over the box once more. 

“Your friendly neighborhood gay needs your help Cooper.” He explains as he starts walking down the hall. Kevin was openly gay, taking every chance he could to remind Betty that was in fact very gay. She couldn’t really pin-point when he had come out or the exact moment she had figured it out. Kevin was merely Kevin regardless of who he loved. That was how Betty had always seen it. Unfortunately, not everyone was so open-minded and kind-hearted. Every once in a while he would be teased for his preference for males. This only inspired Kevin to speak about it more freely and frequently to piss them off. 

Betty lets out a long sigh, “What is it Kev?” She asks timidly. Kevin Keller is prone to terrible ideas. 

“I have a project due for Ms. Z in- “He pauses and looks down and the gold watch wrapped neatly around his wrist. “- approximately forty-five minutes.” He ushers her down the hall and into the tiny classroom that was currently empty. 

“You got me out of class to help you because you procrastinated even though I always tell you not to procrastinate?” She asks him flatly but she knows the amusement shows clear on her face. He sits the box down on the table and starts pulling little clay figures out and sitting them upright. Kevin was seriously not an artist and Betty bites her lip to suppress her giggles. 

“I had to recreate a scene from Lord of the Flies.” He mutters, fiddling with the little clay creatures. “V invited me to this party Saturday Betty. Do you know who was there Betty? Hot rich college boys Betty. I have no regrets.” He looks at her with an intensely serious expression. What concerns her more is how many times he managed to say her name in those few sentences. Suddenly she remembers her phone and sits her stuff down before pulling it out of her purse.   
1 New Message 

Her eyes scan over Jughead’s message. He’s given her an address and a time to meet him. 4:00. She recognizes as a bus station stop just a short way from the school. Her nerves kick in realizing it’s already 2:30. 

“Who are you texting?” Kevin asks, the curiosity very evident in his voice. Betty Cooper never texts anyone besides him, Veronica, or Archie. He was beside Betty and the other two were in class. So that meant it was somebody new. 

“Nobody.” Betty remarks defensively but it’s too late. Kevin is grabbing her phone from her dainty hand in an instant. 

“Jughead Jones!” Kevin yells triumphantly. Betty can see the realization slowly form on his face. “Jughead Jones?” He asks this time and the excitement isn’t there anymore. “As in the gang leader? Southside Jughead Jones?” Okay this is starting to drive Betty crazy. 

“Yes. That’s the one.” She explains, tilting her chin up and crossing her arms. Betty had always looked for the good in people and unlike the rest of Riverdale, she wasn’t one to really judge. 

“Why are you talking to a gang member Betty?” and she knows this is the sheriff’s son in him coming out. She searches her head quickly for a response. 

“A story. For the Blue and Gold. I just thought that maybe I could get the scoop on what the Southside is really like.” The lie rolls of her tongue quickly. Betty really did want to know what the Southside was like; it wasn’t a complete lie. 

Kevin looks ready to protest but Betty doesn’t give him the chance, “Just trust me Kev.” She begs earnestly. She holds his gaze for a few seconds, knowing he’s about to say something.

She cuts him off, “Let’s finish this yeah?” She asks and turns to the project. She messes with the pieces hoping and praying that Kevin will just follow her lead. After a few short seconds, he finally does. 

He doesn’t ask any more questions about it.   
\---------------------------------------------------------------------------  
It’s 3:55. Betty picks nervously at the sleeve of the white cardigan that she’s wearing. She looks down surveying her outfit; she had chosen a white cardigan paired with a soft pink dress underneath, a thin brown strap of a belt around her waist and her feet were in white Keds. She had decided to leave her hair down and wavy today, which in itself was a pretty rare occurrence. She was nervous that maybe she looked too much of a good girl for Jughead Jones. She’s not really sure she could imagine what Jughead’s taste in women was but she knew that it most certainly was not her. Maybe he liked girls who wore skin-tight jeans and barely-there shirts that showed off their curves just right. Girls who were proud of their bodies and knew exactly how to work them. 

She’s pulled from her thoughts when an older black car stops in front of her, she quickly recognizes it as an older dodge charger. One thing about Betty, she likes a nice car just as much as the next girl. Her eyes are running over the nice appearance of the car when he gets out of it. 

Her fingers twitch when she sees him; wanting to touch so bad. That feeling foreign to Betty up until this point. He’s back in his Serpent attire; this time it’s a vest with the large snake emblem on the back. The white shirt covering his chest beneath it starkly contrasts with his otherwise all black outfit except for the grey beanie covering his hair. Betty had never known the feeling of want before. She’s not even really sure what she wants besides the fact that it has to do with Jughead. 

He’s grinning at her, “Betty Cooper.” He drawls out, ultimately twisting her stomach into an even bigger mess. Never in her life has she liked her name. After all that was associated with it, she came to hate it. 

“Jughead Jones.” She offers back, biting her bottom lip to stop the blush from spreading any further than her cheeks. She watches his eyes flicker down to the movement briefly. He smiles and walks around to the passenger side and opens the door for her. 

“C’mon.” He says softly and Betty realizes she’s just standing there staring at him. Oh god. She shuffles her feet and pushes herself forward to walk around the front of the car. She holds the skirt of her dress against and takes a seat. 

“Where are we going?” She asks curiously as he goes to shut her door. He smiles and shrugs a little, indicating that she wasn’t getting an answer. Maybe this should worry her but she feels excitement bubble up in her stomach instead. He shuts the passenger side door and she watches him walk around to his side. The confidence radiates from him, like he knows exactly who he is and what he’s going to do with that. Betty briefly wonders if he’s scared of anything. She can’t imagine what could possibly scare a guy like Jughead. When he takes his seat in the car the words fly out of her mouth before she can stop them.

“Are you scared of anything?” She asks as she slips her seatbelt over her chest and latches it. His eyes seemingly amused by this and after a second he puts his on too, no doubt that’s a first by the look on his face. He starts the car before he finally answers her question. 

“I scare myself.” He finally offers, shifting gears occasionally. Betty’s eyes are so focused on his lightly tanned hand and the scars littering his knuckles that she barely hears him. “I always seem to… I don’t know... break things. No matter how much I don’t mean to.” And he glances over at her. She doesn’t miss the underlying meaning in what he’s saying. That it’s a warning, Jughead Jones may very well break Betty Cooper. Perfect Betty Cooper ruined by a Serpent. Oh how the town would talk. 

She angles her body towards him and juts her chin out a little. “I’d do anything to break just a little. Destroy that “perfect” image everyone thinks I have.” She spits the word out venomously. 

“You’re not perfect.” Jughead states cooly and Betty doesn’t know how that makes her feel. She hates the word but should she feel offended? Now she’s fiddling with her hands because she doesn’t know what to say back but luckily Jughead fills the pause after a while.

“I’ve never found perfect to be interesting Betty. I like all those things that those other people don’t. I wanna know about your fuck ups and your messy hair and you probably wear those really weird fluffy pj pants, I wanna know all that. “ 

Betty grins and a pretty pink blush covers her cheeks, “They’re pink and they have sheep on them actually.” And Jughead’s dazzling smile in return makes her lightheaded.   
“I wanna know what gets under your skin.” The sentence sounds dirty out of his mouth and judging by the sly smirk on his lips when Betty’s breath hitches he must have intended for that. Her mind’s just starting to reel when the car stops and she looks around.

There’s a never ending field in front of her, the tall grass swaying lightly in the breeze. It’s still fairly warm out to be almost fall and she can only imagine all of the brilliant colors in this field during the spring. Her chest feels warm at the thought and she’s out of the car in seconds. There’s a tall, worn down tree close by she makes her way to it. It looks half dead honestly and Betty is slightly scared it will fall on her. A marking on the tree sticks out to her, JB. Jones. She runs her fingers over it lightly. Jones? Surely there’s a connection there and she’s about to ask what it is when she feels Jughead’s warmth pressed close behind her. 

“My sister. We used to come here all the time when our dad was too much. He used to leave at 10 in the morning and come back by 12 drunk off his ass. Her names Jellybean. I used to tell her that one day we’d build a house out here and we’d live here and be happy and nobody would pass out on the couch drunk at noon.” He says and his voice is soft. Betty has now turned to face him and they’re very close. Close enough to notice the bags under his eyes. Yet Jughead Jones is tragically beautiful. 

“Where is she now?” Betty asks quietly. Heart breaking for Jughead’s terrible childhood. Her parents had never been ones to drink besides a glass of wine at dinner here and there. 

“Toledo. Her and my mom.” The way his tone is clipped tells Betty this is a sore subject and she wants him to know she’s there for him. She raises her hand and places it on his arm. The air around them suddenly feels changed. Intense. They’re very close. His eyes are studying her. Leisurely traveling down her face past her nose to her lips. Her tongue slips out to wet them and that’s when Jughead backs away. 

“I’m going to kiss the fuck out of you Betty Cooper. Just not today.” Is all he says and Betty doesn’t know the reasoning and doesn’t really care. Her entire body is red at this point and she feels like she just might die. Jughead Jones just promised to kiss her. Oh god. He grins at her and she feels excitement all the way down to her toes. He reaches his hand out to her. 

“C’mon, I wanna show you something.” He coaxes in a sweet voice. She takes his hand and follows along. Eyes looking carefully at the way their hands fit together.


End file.
